Portable = GOOD
Diatonic = GOOD
Plays best in keys of D and G = GOOD
Requires a maximum of 6 fingers to operate = GOOD
Any questions? 
Cāmon Tony, it wasnāt that difficult to understand. He said whistles hardly discuss anything with mandolins. Not surprisingly, since neither whistles nor mandos can articulate human words.
Shouldnāt this topic be called "whistlers are weird, arenāt WE?
ā¦I think what it all comes down to is the fact that ANY group of people, who share a passion about a certain thing, will find endless subjects to discuss and debate with each other. Whether itās art, religeon, music, movies, science, politics, etc.
The guitar is my main squeeze. I think that Iām part of the minority when it comes to discussing/debating all things āguitarā: type, model, wood, tuning pegs, all the technical stuff. However, I could go on all night about what I like to create musically through the guitar, what tones/sounds I prefer. The inspiration for songs, lyrics, etc. This is the type of conversation I like to have with other guitarists. The same goes for the tinwhistle for me as well. When it comes right down to it, itās the music. Of course, there are times when Iām curious as to what type of instruments are recommended, and I want all the advice that I can get. But, if Iād happen to run into an old, beat-up guitar at a pawnshop one day, and manage to get quite a good sound out of it, Iād surely have no hesitations about buying itā¦
Okay, yes, itās true. I have observed the phenomenon among both HD and MD enthusiasts http://everythingdulcimer.com/discussion/read.php?TID=1322&page=1#14050 , as well as among members of the Cittern List.
Itās not a new phenomenon, having first been noted by classical Greek philosophers.
āThe muses affect especially upon the strings of the kithara player who in his enraptured state is oft known to seek out instruments by various makers and to chat endlessly about the subject when meeting with fellow kitharists in the temple of Publius.ā --Socrates (pseudepigraphal, Walden, et al. MIX and the Ancients. Redhill, Okla. Waldco Press, 2004)
"The aulos, a thing of great precision in skilled hands is known to become an object of obsession. Specifically, the mathematical dynamics are worthy of much consideration, as every time an inventory is taken among the players there is generally an increase. " --Pythagoras (ibid.)
Walden - how in the world did you find the ONE thread on E.D. that I DIDNāT post to???
Missy